Navigation system and route search method thereof

ABSTRACT

A navigation system and a route search method thereof are provided. The navigation system includes a vehicle controller that performs platoon driving and a service server. The service server includes a communicator that communicates with the vehicle and receives traffic information, a database that stores platoon driving information received from the communicator, and a processor that generates a driving route based on the traffic information and the platoon driving information according to a route search request from the vehicle.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of priority to Korean PatentApplication No. 10-2019-0031741, filed on Mar. 20, 2019, the entirecontents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a navigation system and a route searchmethod thereof, and more particularly, to a navigation system and routesearch method that search for an optimal driving route for an individualdriver and platoon based on real-time traffic information.

BACKGROUND

A navigation system identifies a current position of a vehicle andsearches for an optimal route toward a destination based on map datapreviously stored in a memory. The navigation system also calculates theoptimal route to the destination based on real-time traffic informationcollected via a communication network. Conventionally, the optimal routeis calculated based on a shortest distance, a minimum time, and/or aminimum cost in route search, but a new route search method is neededwhen autonomous driving vehicles are generalized and platooning iscommercialized.

SUMMARY

The present disclosure provides a navigation system and a route searchmethod which search for an optimal driving route in which individualdriving and platoon driving are possible in consideration of real-timetraffic situations and platoon driving information. The technicalproblems to be solved by the present inventive concept are not limitedto the aforementioned problems, and any other technical problems notmentioned herein will be clearly understood from the followingdescription by those skilled in the art to which the present disclosurepertains.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a navigation systemmay include a controller configured to perform platoon driving and aservice server. The service server may include a communicator configuredto communicate with a subject vehicle in which the navigation system ishoused and configured to receive traffic information, a databaseconfigured to store platoon driving information received from thecommunicator, and a processor configured to generate a driving routebased on the traffic information and the platoon driving informationaccording to a route search request from the vehicle. The platoondriving information may include information regarding a platoon drivingglobal route, a position of a grouping vehicle, and an autonomousdriving level.

The processor may be configured to generate an individual driving routebased on the traffic information according to the route search request,search for the platoon driving global route which at least partiallymatches the individual driving route, and calculate and provide aplatoon joining position and a platoon joining time to the vehicle(e.g., the controller). The processor may further be configured togenerate a driving route in which individual driving and platoon drivingare possible by mixing the individual driving route, and the platoondriving global route based on a determination of whether to join aplatoon.

Additionally, the processor may be configured to generate a drivingroute of lowest cost using a cost function considering at least one offatigue, a manual driving time and a schedule of a driver, whether it ispossible for the vehicle to join a platoon, an autonomous driving levelof a grouping vehicle, a waiting time for joining the platoon, anindividual driving distance after platoon driving, a platoon drivinghold time, and a platoon exiting time. The processor may be configuredto calculate a platoon joining position and a platoon joining time atwhich it is possible to participate in platoon driving based on acurrent position of the vehicle, in response to a request fordetermination of whether it is possible to join a platoon from thevehicle.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a vehicle terminalapparatus may include a communicator configured to communicate with aservice server and a grouping vehicle, a vehicle control deviceconfigured to control a behavior of a vehicle, and a processorconfigured to receive a driving route in which individual driving andplatoon driving are possible by requesting route search from the serviceserver. The processor may instruct the vehicle control device to controlfollowing driving when the vehicle arrives at a platoon driving sectionalong the driving route.

Additionally, the processor may be configured to determine whether tosuggest platoon driving to the driver based on at least one of fatigue,a manual driving time and a schedule of the driver using sensors duringdriving of the vehicle. The processor may then be configured to requestthe service server to determine whether it is possible to join a platoonbased on a current position of the vehicle in response to determining tosuggest the platoon driving. The vehicle terminal apparatus may furtherinclude a user input device configured to receive a user input. Theprocessor may be configured to stop the platoon driving and performroute guidance for the individual driving when receiving a platoon exitcommand from the user input device during the platoon driving.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, a route search methodof a navigation system may include receiving, by a service server, aroute search request from a vehicle, and generating, by the serviceserver, a driving route based on traffic information and platoon drivinginformation according to the route search request. The generating of thedriving route may include generating, by the service server, a drivingroute of a lowest cost using a cost function considering at least one offatigue, a manual driving time and a schedule of a driver, whether it ispossible for the vehicle to join a platoon, an autonomous driving levelof a grouping vehicle, a waiting time for joining the platoon, anindividual driving distance after platoon driving, a platoon drivinghold time, and a platoon exiting time.

The generating of the driving route may include generating, by theservice server, an individual driving route of the vehicle based on thetraffic information, and searching for, by the service server, a platoondriving global route which at least partially matches the individualdriving route, and generating, by the service server, a driving routethat includes platoon joining information by mixing or combining theindividual driving route and the platoon driving global route.

The route search method may further include after searching for of theplatoon driving global route, calculating, by the service server, aplatoon joining position and a platoon joining time based on the platoondriving global route, and transmitting the platoon joining position andtime to the vehicle, determining, by the vehicle, whether to join aplatoon based on a driver's intention to participate in platoon drivingbased on the platoon joining position and time, and requesting, by thevehicle, platoon joining from the service server when it is determinedto join the platoon.

The route search method may further include, after generating thedriving route including the platoon joining information, transmitting,by the service server, the driving route including the platoon joininginformation to the vehicle, moving, by the vehicle, to a platoon joiningposition based on the platoon joining information, and joining, by thevehicle, a designated platoon at the platoon joining position andperforming platoon driving. The route search method may further include,after performing the platoon driving, stopping, by the vehicle, theplatoon driving, and performing route guidance for individual drivingwhen a platoon exit command is received from a driver.

Additionally, the route search method may include, after searching forthe platoon driving global route, transmitting, by the service server,the individual driving route when the platoon driving global route isnot found, performing, by the vehicle, route guidance based on theindividual driving route, determining, by the vehicle, whether to join aplatoon based on driver information during driving of the vehicleaccording to the route guidance, and requesting, by the vehicle, platoonjoining from the service server when it is determined to join theplatoon.

The determining of whether to join the platoon based on the driverinformation may include determining, by the vehicle, whether to suggestplatoon driving to a driver based on at least one of fatigue, a manualdriving time and a schedule of the driver, requesting, by the vehicle,the service server to determine whether it is possible to join theplatoon in response to determining to join the platoon, calculating, bythe service server, a platoon joining position and a platoon joiningtime at which the vehicle is able to participate in platoon drivingbased on a current position of the vehicle and transmitting the platoonjoining position and time to the vehicle, and determining, by thevehicle, whether to join the platoon based on a driver's intention toparticipate in platoon driving based on the platoon joining position andtime.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the presentdisclosure will be more apparent from the following detailed descriptiontaken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings:

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating a navigation systemaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a vehicle terminal apparatusillustrated in FIG. 1 according to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIGS. 3A and 3B are flowcharts of a route search method of a navigationsystem according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a diagram for describing generation of a route according to anexemplary embodiment the present disclosure; and

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a computing system for executing a routesearch method according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It is understood that the term “vehicle” or “vehicular” or other similarterm as used herein is inclusive of motor vehicles in general such aspassenger automobiles including sports utility vehicles (SUV), buses,trucks, various commercial vehicles, watercraft including a variety ofboats and ships, aircraft, and the like, and includes hybrid vehicles,electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid electric vehicles, hydrogen-poweredvehicles and other alternative fuel vehicles (e.g. fuels derived fromresources other than petroleum). As referred to herein, a hybrid vehicleis a vehicle that has two or more sources of power, for example bothgasoline-powered and electric-powered vehicles.

Although exemplary embodiment is described as using a plurality of unitsto perform the exemplary process, it is understood that the exemplaryprocesses may also be performed by one or plurality of modules.Additionally, it is understood that the term controller/control unitrefers to a hardware device that includes a memory and a processor. Thecontroller may be specifically programmed to executed the methoddescribed herein. The memory is configured to store the modules and theprocessor is specifically configured to execute said modules to performone or more processes which are described further below.

Furthermore, control logic of the present disclosure may be embodied asnon-transitory computer readable media on a computer readable mediumcontaining executable program instructions executed by a processor,controller/control unit or the like. Examples of the computer readablemediums include, but are not limited to, ROM, RAM, compact disc(CD)-ROMs, magnetic tapes, floppy disks, flash drives, smart cards andoptical data storage devices. The computer readable recording medium canalso be distributed in network coupled computer systems so that thecomputer readable media is stored and executed in a distributed fashion,e.g., by a telematics server or a Controller Area Network (CAN).

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the disclosure.As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises”and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term “and/or”includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associatedlisted items.

Unless specifically stated or obvious from context, as used herein, theterm “about” is understood as within a range of normal tolerance in theart, for example within 2 standard deviations of the mean. “About” canbe understood as within 10%, 9%, 8%, 7%, 6%, 5%, 4%, 3%, 2%, 1%, 0.5%,0.1%, 0.05%, or 0.01% of the stated value. Unless otherwise clear fromthe context, all numerical values provided herein are modified by theterm “about.”

Hereinafter, some exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure willbe described in detail with reference to the exemplary drawings. Inadding the reference numerals to the components of each drawing, itshould be noted that the identical or equivalent component is designatedby the identical numeral even when they are displayed on other drawings.Further, in describing the exemplary embodiment of the presentdisclosure, a detailed description of well-known features or functionswill be ruled out in order not to unnecessarily obscure the gist of thepresent disclosure.

In describing the components of the embodiment according to the presentdisclosure, terms such as first, second, “A”, “B”, (a), (b), and thelike may be used. These terms are merely intended to distinguish onecomponent from another component, and the terms do not limit the nature,sequence or order of the constituent components. Unless otherwisedefined, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms,have the same meanings as those generally understood by those skilled inthe art to which the present disclosure pertains. Such terms as thosedefined in a generally used dictionary are to be interpreted as havingmeanings equal to the contextual meanings in the relevant field of art,and are not to be interpreted as having ideal or excessively formalmeanings unless clearly defined as having such in the presentapplication.

The present disclosure relates to a technology for generating an optimalroute in which individual driving and platoon driving (platooning) aremixed or combined using a cost function considering traffic information,a driver's fatigue degree or schedule to be processed during driving ofthe vehicle, or the like when searching for (generating) a route. In thedisclosure, the individual driving may refer to a vehicle that is beingdriven alone (e.g., without being in a platoon). In this case, behaviorof the vehicle may be adjusted by a driver (e.g., manual driving) or byan electronic control device (e.g., controller) mounted within thevehicle (e.g., autonomous driving). The platoon driving refers to oneleading vehicle LV and one or more following vehicles FV forming aplatoon or group and performing platoon driving. In the presentdisclosure, the leading vehicle LV may be a most front vehicle in a rowof vehicles which perform platoon driving, the following vehicle FV maybe a vehicle following the leading vehicle LV and a preceding vehicle isa vehicle ahead of a vehicle (host or subject vehicle). The leadingvehicle LV and the following vehicles FV may be collectively referred toas grouping vehicles (GV).

FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram illustrating a navigation systemaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure and FIG.2 is a block diagram illustrating a vehicle terminal apparatusillustrated in FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 1, a navigation system mayinclude a service server 100, a traffic information provision system200, and a vehicle terminal apparatus 300 mounted on each of a vehicle“V” and grouped vehicles GV, which are connected via a communicationnetwork.

The service server 100 may be configured to manage information relatedto platoon driving of the grouped vehicles GV, that is, platoon drivinginformation, and search for and provide an optimal driving route basedon the platoon driving information at a request of the vehicle “V”. Theservice server 100 may include a communicator 110, a memory 120, aprocessor 130 and database DB.

Particularly, the communicator 110 may be configured to perform wiredand/or wireless communication with the vehicles “V” and GV, a roadsideapparatus and/or the traffic information provision system 200. As wiredcommunication technology, a LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide AreaNetwork), an Ethernet and/or an Integrated Services Digital Network(ISDN) may be used, and as wireless communication technology, Vehicle toEverything (V2X), wireless Internet, and/or mobile communication may beused.

In the disclosure, as the V2X technology, Vehicle to Vehicle (V2V),Vehicle to Infrastructure (V2I), Vehicle-to-Nomadic Devices (V2N),and/or In-Vehicle Network (IVN), or the like may be applied. As wirelessInternet technology, telematics, wireless LAN (WLAN) (WiFi), Wibro(wireless broadband), and Wimax (World Interoperability for MicrowaveAccess) may be used. As mobile communication technology, Code DivisionMultiple Access (CDMA), Global System for Mobile communication (GSM),Long Term Evolution (LTE) and International Mobile Telecommunication(IMT)—2020 may be used.

The communicator 110 may be configured to receive traffic informationtransmitted from the traffic information provision system 200. Thetraffic information provision system 200 may provide traffic information(e.g., traffic situation information for each road section, roadinformation and/or climate information, or the like) and may beimplemented with an Intelligent Transportation System (ITS).

The memory 120 may be configured to store a program for operation of theprocessor 130, and temporarily store input/output data. The memory 120may be implemented with at least one storage medium (recording medium)of storage media such as a flash memory, a hard disk, an SD card (SecureDigital Card), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a Static Random AccessMemory (SRAM), a Read Only Memory (ROM), a Programmable Read Only Memory(PROM), an Electrically Erasable and Programmable ROM (EEPROM), anErasable and Programmable ROM (EPROM), a register, a removable disk anda web storage.

Further, the memory 120 may be configured to store map information(e.g., precision map), various setting information, and the like. Inaddition, the memory 120 may be configured to store traffic information(e.g., traffic situation information) and location information of thevehicle “V”, which are received via the communicator 110. The memory 120may be configured to store a route search (generation) algorithm. Theprocessor 130 may be configured to execute overall operation of theservice server 100. The processor 130 may be implemented with at leastone of an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a digitalsignal processor (DSP), a programmable logic device (PLD), fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGAs), a central processing unit (CPU),microcontrollers, and microprocessors.

The database DB may be configured to store and manage platoon drivinginformation. The platoon driving information may include leading vehicleidentification information, following vehicle identificationinformation, position information of a vehicle in a row of vehicles in aplatoon, a platoon driving global route, positions of the groupingvehicles (e.g., the leading vehicle and the following vehicles), anautonomous driving level, platoon joining and leaving information (e.g.,joining-vehicle identification information, a joining position and time,leaving-vehicle identification information, and/or a leaving positionand time, etc.). The processor 130 may be configured to collect currentlocation (current position) information of the grouping vehicles GV viathe communicator 110 at preset periods (e.g., about five minutes), andstore and manage the information in the database DB. The processor 130may be configured to collect the current location information of thegrouping vehicles GV in real time. The autonomous driving level meanslevels of driving automation defined by Society of Automotive Engineers(SAE) international.

The processor 130 may be configured to generate an individual drivingroute using map information and traffic information stored in the memory120 in response to a route search request transmitted from the vehicle“V” via the communicator 110. The vehicle “V” may then be configured totransmit a current location of the vehicle “V” and destinationinformation together at the route search request. Additionally, thevehicle “V” may be configured to additionally transmit a desireddestination arrival time at the route search request. The processor 130may be configured to generate an individual driving route(s) forarriving at a destination from a current location of the vehicle “V”based on the traffic information based on the map information.

The processor 130 may be configured to search the database DB for aplatoon driving global route that at least partially matches theindividual driving route. The processor 130 may then be configured toextract a section route in which the individual driving route and theplatoon driving global route match each other. The processor 130 may beconfigured to calculate a platoon joining position and time information,and a platoon exit position and time information based on the individualdriving route and the platoon driving global route. The processor 130may be configured to determine, as the platoon joining position, aposition at which the individual driving route meets the platoon drivingglobal route (e.g., a start position of the section route in which theindividual driving route matches the platoon driving global route). Onthe other hand, the processor 130 may be configured to determine, as theplatoon leaving position, an end position of the section route in whichthe individual driving route matches the platoon driving global route,that is, a position at which the individual driving route is separatedfrom the platoon driving global route.

The processor 130 may be configured to generate a driving route of thevehicle “V” based on the detected platoon driving global route. In otherwords, the driving route may include a section route in which thevehicle “V” drives individually (e.g., individual driving route) and asection route (e.g., a section route for platoon driving) in which thevehicle “V” joins a preset specific platoon and performs autonomousdriving for platooning by following the leading vehicle LV in thecorresponding platoon.

As described above, the processor 130 may be configured to generate adriving route (e.g., an optimal route) in which individual driving andplatoon driving both are possible, based on traffic information andplatoon driving information. On the other hand, when generating thedriving route, the processor 130 may be configured to generate a drivingroute of a lowest cost using a cost function considering the health,fitness status, fatigue and manual driving time of a driver, a scheduleto be processed during driving of the vehicle, an autonomous drivinglevel of a grouping vehicle, whether it is possible to join a platoon, awaiting time for joining a platoon, a platoon exit time, an individualdriving distance after platoon autonomous driving and/or a platoondriving hold time.

In order words, the processor 130 may be configured to generate adriving route of a lowest cost based on least one of the health, fitnessstatus, fatigue and manual driving time of a driver, a schedule to beprocessed during driving of the vehicle, an autonomous driving level ofa grouping vehicle, whether it is possible to join a platoon (e.g., dueto detection of a nearby platoon), a waiting time for joining a platoon,a platoon leaving time, an individual driving distance after platoonautonomous driving and a platoon driving hold time. The health, fitnessstatus, and fatigue of a driver may be determined using biometricinformation gathered by a sensor. The schedule to be processed may beinput ahead of time by a driver and stored in the database. Theprocessor 130 may be configured to transmit a platoon joining positionand time information to the vehicle “V” when a platoon driving globalroute is detected of which at least a part matches the individualdriving route. In other words, the processor 130 may be configured tooutput a notification to the vehicle “V” regarding the existence of asection of the individual driving route, in which the vehicle “V” isable to participate in platoon driving when the section detected.

Thereafter, when the processor 130 receives an intention (e.g., decisionof participation or user) to participate in platoon driving from thevehicle “V”, the processor 130 may be configured to transmit a drivingroute including platoon joining information or platoon joining and exitinformation to the vehicle “V”. In particular, the processor 130 may beconfigured to transmit the platoon joining information or the platoonjoining and exit information to the grouping vehicles GV. The processor130 may be configured to transmit an individual driving route when thevehicle “V” does not intend to participate in the platoon driving. Thevehicle “V” may be configured to perform route guidance according to theindividual driving route or perform autonomous driving according to theindividual driving route.

In response to receiving a request for determination of whether it ispossible to join a platoon from the vehicle “V” which is driving alongthe individual driving route, the processor 130 may be configured tosearch for a platoon which the vehicle “V” is able to join based on acurrent position of the vehicle “V”. Particularly, the processor 130 maybe configured to search for a platoon driving global route which atleast partially matches the individual driving route set in the vehicle“V”. The processor 130 may then be configured to calculate a platoonjoining position and a platoon joining time based on the individualdriving route set in the vehicle “V” and the detected platoon drivingglobal route. The processor 130 may be configured to transmitinformation regarding the platoon joining position and time to thevehicle “V”.

Thereafter, the processor 130 may be configured to generate a drivingroute including platoon joining information and transmit the drivingroute to the vehicle “V” depending on determination of whether to join aplatoon based on the information on the platoon joining position andtime of the vehicle “V”. In particular, the processor 130 may beconfigured to transmit the platoon joining information to the groupingvehicles GV. In response to receiving the driving route including theplatoon joining information, the vehicle “V” may move to the platoonjoining position, join a preset (predetermined) platoon and performplatoon autonomous driving (platoon driving) along with the groupingvehicle GV. In particular, a controller within the vehicle “V” may beconfigured to operate the vehicle to execute the above describedprocesses.

Moreover, referring to FIG. 2, the vehicle terminal apparatus 300 mayinclude a communicator 310, a detector 320, a positioning device 330, amemory 340, a user input device 350, an output device 360, a drivingcontroller 370, and a processor 380. In this specification, tofacilitate understanding of the description, a case where the vehicleterminal apparatus 300 is mounted on the vehicle “V” requesting theroute search from the service server 100 will be mainly described.

The communicator 310 may be configured to perform wired and/or wirelesscommunication. A Local Area Networks (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN),Ethernet and/or an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) may beused as wired communication technology, and Vehicle-to-everything (V2X),wireless Internet and/or mobile communication may be used as wirelesscommunication technology.

Further, the detector 320 (e.g., sensor unit) may be configured toobtain surroundings information (e.g., environment information) and/orvehicle information of the vehicle “V” using various sensors and/or anelectronic control unit (ECU) mounted within the vehicle “V”. Thesensors may include a camera (e.g., image sensor), a radar (RadioDetecting And Ranging), a LiDAR (Light Detection And Ranging), anultrasonic sensor, and the like. In addition, the sensors may include animpact sensor, a speed sensor, a steering angle sensor, an accelerationsensor, and the like.

The detector 320 may be configured to obtain vehicle information (e.g.,vehicle speed and vehicle running time) from various electronic controlunits (ECUs) connected via the IVN. The IVN may be implemented with, forexample, a Controller Area Network (CAN), a Media Oriented SystemsTransport (MOST) network, a Local Interconnect Network (LIN), and/or anX-by-Wire (Flexray). In addition, the detector 320 may be configured toobtain driver information such as the fatigue, health and fitness statusand/or manual driving time of the driver using a driver monitoringdevice and a biometric signal measuring device or sensor. Thepositioning device 330 may be configured to measure a current position(current location) of the vehicle “V”. The positioning device 330 mayspecifically be configured to measure a position of the vehicle using atleast one of positioning techniques such as Global Positioning System(GPS), Dead Reckoning (DR), Differential GPS (DGPS), and Carrier PhaseDifferential GPS (CDGPS).

The memory 340 may be configured to store software programmed to causethe processor 380 to execute predetermined operation, and storeinput/output data. The memory 340 may be implemented with at least onestorage medium (recording medium) of storage media such as a flashmemory, a hard disk, an SD card (Secure Digital Card), a Random AccessMemory (RAM), a Static Random Access Memory (SRAM), a Read Only Memory(ROM), a Programmable Read Only Memory (PROM), an Electrically Erasableand Programmable ROM (EEPROM), an Erasable and Programmable ROM (EPROM),a register, a removable disk and a web storage.

Particularly, the memory 340 may be configured to store map information(e.g., precision map). The map information may be automatically updatedat predetermined intervals or manually updated by the user. The memory340 may be configured to store vehicle identification information andthe maximum autonomous driving level (e.g., autonomous driving supportlevel) which the vehicle “V” is able to support. The memory 340 may alsobe configured to store software programmed to perform following drivingand/or autonomous driving of the vehicle “V”. The user input device 350may be configured to generate input data based on a user operation(e.g., participation or non-participation in platoon driving, platoonjoining or platoon leaving, or the like). The user input device 350 maybe implemented with, for example, a keyboard, a keypad, a button, aswitch, a touch pad, and/or a touch screen.

The output device 360 may be configured to output a progress status anda result of operation of the vehicle terminal apparatus 300 throughvisual information, audible information, and/or tactile information, andmay include a display, a sound output module, a tactile feedback outputmodule, and the like. The display may include at least one of a liquidcrystal display (LCD), a thin film transistor liquid crystal display(TFT LCD), an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display, a flexibledisplay, a three-dimensional (3D) display, a transparent display, ahead-up display (HUD), a touch screen, and a cluster. In particular, thesound output module may be configured to output audio data stored in thememory 340. The sound output module may include a receiver, a speaker,and/or a buzzer. The tactile feedback output module may be configured tooutput a signal in a form that the user is able to perceive with atactile sense. For example, the tactile feedback output module may beimplemented with a vibrator to adjust a vibration intensity, a vibrationpattern, and the like.

Further, the driving controller 370 may be configured to adjust andexecute acceleration/deceleration, braking, shifting, and/or steering ofthe vehicle “V” by operating a power source control device (e.g., anengine control device) configured to operate a power source (e.g., anengine and/or a drive motor) of the vehicle, a braking control device, asteering control device and/or a shift control device. The power sourcecontrol device may be configured to adjust the output of the powersource based on position information of an accelerator pedal or adriving speed requested from the processor 380 (e.g., engagement amountof pedal). The braking control device may be configured to adjust abraking pressure based on a position of a brake pedal or an instructionfrom the processor 380 (e.g., engagement amount of pedal). The shiftcontrol device may be configured to execute the shifting of the vehicle“V” and may be implemented with an electronic shifter or an electricshifter (Shift By Wire, SBW). The steering control device may beconfigured to adjust the steering of the vehicle “V” and may beimplemented with Motor Drive Power Steering (MDPS).

The processor 380 may be configured to execute overall operation of thevehicle “V”, and may be implemented with at least one of an applicationspecific integrated circuit (ASIC), a digital signal processor (DSP), aprogrammable logic device (PLD), field programmable gate array (FPGAs),a central processing unit (CPU), microcontrollers, and microprocessors.The processor 380 may be configured to request route search from theservice server 100, and receive a driving route from the service server100. The processor 380 may then be configured to perform route guidanceby mapping the driving route received from the service server 100 to themap information. In particular, the processor 380 may be configured tooutput map information onto which the driving route is mapped to adisplay.

The processor 380 may be configured to transmit a current position ofthe vehicle “V” measured by the positioning device 330 and presetdestination information when the route search is requested. Inparticular, the processor 380 may be configured to additionally transmita desired destination arrival time to the service server 100. After theroute search is requested, the processor 380 may be configured toreceive information regarding the platoon joining position and timetransmitted from the service server 100 via the communicator 310.Accordingly, the processor 380 may be configured to map and display theplatoon joining position onto the map information and display a pop-upwindow to inquire about a user intention to participate in platoondriving on a display screen.

The processor 380 may be configured to determine whether to participatein platoon driving based on a user input received through the user inputdevice 350. When the user intends to participate in platoon driving(e.g., when a user selection is received for participation in theplatoon), the processor 380 may be configured to transmit the platoonjoining request information to the service server 100. In response toreceiving driving route information including the platoon joininginformation from the service server 100, the processor 380 may beconfigured to perform route guidance to the platoon joining positionbased on the platoon joining information. The driver may operate thevehicle “V” based on the route guidance and move or guide the vehicle“V” to the platoon joining position.

When the vehicle “V” arrives at or reaches the platoon joining position,the processor 380 may be configured to determine whether groupingvehicles GV in a designated platoon arrive at the platoon joiningposition. In particular, the processor 380 may be configured todetermine whether the grouping vehicles GV arrive at the platoon joiningposition by communication with the service server 100 and/or a leadingvehicle LV in the platoon. The processor 380 may be configured to wait(e.g. remaining in a standby state) when the grouping vehicles GV do notarrive at the platoon joining position. When the grouping vehicles GVarrive at the platoon joining position, the processor 380 may join thedesignated platoon based on a predetermined procedure and performplatoon driving. In other words, the processor 380 may join the platoonusing communication with the grouping vehicles GV in the designatedplatoon and may be configured to operate the vehicle to follow theleading vehicle of the platoon to perform autonomous driving.

When the user intends not to participate in platoon driving, theprocessor 380 may be configured to transmit information for notifying anon-joining state to a platoon to the service server 100. Thereafter,the processor 380 may be configured to receive an individual drivingroute from the service server 100 and perform route guidance. Theprocessor 380 may be configured to collect driver information using thedetector 320 while the vehicle “V” performs individual driving. In thedisclosure, the driver information may include at least one of thedriver's fatigue degree, manual driving time, and schedule. Theprocessor 380 may be configured to determine whether to suggestparticipation in platoon driving based on the driver information. Forexample, the processor 380 may be configured to determine the suggestionfor participation in platoon driving when the driver's fatigue degree isout of a reference range or the manual driving time exceeds a referencetime.

The vehicle “V” may be configured to request the service server 100 todetermine whether it is possible to join a platoon when the suggestionfor participation in platoon driving is determined. In particular, theprocessor 380 may be configured to transmit current position informationof the vehicle “V” measured by the positioning device 330 to the serviceserver 100. In response to receiving a result of the determination ofwhether it is possible to join a platoon from the service server 100,the processor 380 may be configured to output the result of thedetermination to the driver in a form which the driver is able toperceive. When it is possible to join a platoon, the processor 380 maybe configured to display the information regarding a platoon joiningposition and a platoon joining time on a display and determine whetherto join the platoon based on a user input.

In response to determining to join the platoon, the processor 380 may beconfigured to request platoon joining from the service server 100 andreceive a driving route including platoon joining information.Thereafter, the processor 380 may be configured to execute routeguidance to the platoon joining position, and when the vehicle “V”arrives at the platoon joining position, join a designated platoon andperform platoon driving. In response to determining not to join theplatoon, the processor 380 may be configured to maintain the routeguidance according to the individual driving route. In other words, whenindividual driving is determined, the processor 380 may be configured toexecute perform the route guidance using the individual driving route asa driving route.

In response to receiving a platoon exit command from the user inputdevice 350 during platoon driving, the processor 380 may be configuredto request platoon exit from the service server 100 and/or the groupingvehicles GV. Thereafter, when the vehicle “V” arrives at a platoon exitposition after the platoon exit is requested, the processor 380 may beconfigured to stop the platoon driving and perform the individualdriving. Further, the vehicle terminal apparatus 300 mounted within thegrouping vehicles GV may be configured to measure a current vehicleposition at predetermined intervals, and transmit the position to theservice server 100. In addition, the vehicle terminal apparatuses 300mounted within following vehicles FV1 and FV2 may follow the precedingvehicle PV based on an instruction from the leading vehicle LV and allowthe vehicle to perform autonomous driving.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are flowcharts of a route search method of a navigationsystem according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure,and FIG. 4 is a diagram for describing generation of a route accordingto the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 3A, the vehicle “V” may beconfigured to transmit a route search request to the service server 100(S110). The processor 380 of the vehicle “V” may be configured totransmit both current position information of the vehicle “V” measuredby the positioning device 330 and preset destination information whenthe route search is requested. In this case, the vehicle “V” may also beconfigured to transmit a desired destination arrival time.

The service server 100 may be configured to generate an individualdriving route based on the current position and destination informationof the vehicle “V” (S120). Particularly, the processor 130 of theservice server 100 may be configured to generate the individual drivingroute based on traffic information. For example, when the vehicle “V”intends to drive from location “A” to location “A′” as illustrated inFIG. 4, the service server 100 may be configured to generate a firstindividual driving route (a→c→f) and a second individual driving route(a→d→e→f) in response to the route search request from the vehicle “V”.

The service server 100 may be configured to search for a platoon drivingglobal route which at least partially matches the individual drivingroute (S130). For example, when a platoon driving global route (b→d→g)for driving from location B to location B′ as illustrated in FIG. 4 isstored in the database DB, the service server 100 may be configured tosearch the database DB for the corresponding platoon driving globalroute since a section “d” in the platoon driving global route matches asection “d” in the second individual driving route.

When the platoon driving global route is detected, the service server100 may be configured to calculate a platoon joining position and aplatoon joining time based on the individual driving route (e.g., thesecond individual driving route) and the platoon driving global route,which match each other in a particular section. Referring to FIG. 4, theservice server 100 may be configured to calculate a location P1 at whichthe second individual driving route meets the platoon driving globalroute, as the platoon joining position.

The service server 100 may be configured to transmit informationregarding the calculated platoon joining position and time to thevehicle “V” (S150). In response to receiving the information regardingthe platoon joining position and time, the vehicle “V” may be configuredto determine whether to join a platoon based on the informationregarding the platoon joining position and time. The processor 380 ofthe vehicle “V” may be configured to map the platoon joining positiononto map information and display the same (e.g., on a display within thevehicle). The processor 380 of the vehicle “V” may also be configured tooutput a time (e.g., a waiting time) necessary to wait at the platoonjoining position to participate in platoon driving. A user (e.g.,driver) may identify the platoon joining position and time and thendetermine whether to participate in platoon driving. The vehicle “V” maybe configured to determine whether to join the platoon by reflecting theuser's intention to participate in platoon driving. In response todetermining to join the platoon (e.g., based on user input), the vehicle“V” may be configured to transmit a platoon joining request to theservice server 100 (S170). In particular, the vehicle “V” may beconfigured to transmit vehicle identification information together withthe platoon joining request.

The service server 100 may be configured to generate driving routeinformation including the platoon joining information (e.g., the platoonjoining position and time) by mixing or combining the individual drivingroute and the platoon driving global route according to the platoonjoining request of the vehicle “V” and transmit the generated drivingroute information to the vehicle “V”. In particular, the service server100 may be configured to generate a platoon exit information (e.g.,platoon exit position and time). For example, the service server 100 maybe configured to generate a driving route (a→d→e→f), the platoon joininginformation (platoon joining position P1 and time), and the platoonleaving information (platoon exit position P2 and time), based on thesecond individual driving route (a→d→e→f) and the platoon driving globalroute (b→d→g).

The service server 100 may then be configured to transmit the platoonjoining information to the grouping vehicles GV (S190). The vehicle “V”and the grouping vehicles GV may move to the platoon joining positionbased on the platoon joining information. The grouping vehicles GV maymove to the platoon joining position and determine a position of thevehicle “V” in a row of vehicles in the platoon, or the like. Thevehicle “V” and the grouping vehicles GV may be configured to executeplatoon driving after arriving at the platoon joining position (S210).In particular, the vehicle “V” may be configured to (e.g., may beoperated to) join the platoon to which the grouping vehicles GV belongaccording to a predetermined procedure, follow a preceding vehicle ofthe platoon which the vehicle “V” joins, and execute autonomous driving.

Thereafter, when the vehicle “V” arrives at the platoon leavingposition, the vehicle “V” may be configured to stop the platoon drivingand perform the individual driving. For example, in response toreceiving the driving route (a→d→e→f) including the section route “d” inwhich platoon driving is possible, the vehicle “V” may be configured todrive individually in a section “a” and move to the platoon joiningposition P1. Then, the vehicle “V” may be configured to join the platoonand execute platoon driving in the section “d” together with thegrouping vehicles GV. In response to arriving at the platoon leavingposition P2, the vehicle “V” may be configured to stop the platoondriving and execute the individual driving in sections “e” and “f” (seeFIG. 4).

Referring to FIG. 3B, when a platoon driving global route that at leastpartially matches the individual driving route is not detected in S130and the vehicle “V” may be configured to determine not to join theplatoon in S160, the service server 100 may be configured to transmitthe individual driving route generated in S120 to the vehicle “V”(S310). The vehicle “V” may be configured to map the individual drivingroute onto the map information and then execute route guidance (S320).The driver may operate the vehicle based on the route guidance.

The vehicle “V” may be configured to determine whether to suggestplatoon driving based on at least one of the fatigue, the manual drivingtime, and schedule of the driver during the individual driving (S330).The processor 380 of the vehicle terminal apparatus 300 mounted withinthe vehicle “V” may be configured to obtain and collect driverinformation such as the driver's fatigue degree, manual driving time,schedule or the like using the detector 320 while the vehicle “V”performs individual driving. The processor 380 may be configured todetermine the driver's fatigue degree based on the biometric informationof the driver measured by the biometric signal measuring device andidentify a schedule from the driver's electronic device (e.g.,smartphone and/or tablet) through the communicator 310. Further, theprocessor 380 may be configured to calculate a time during which thedriver directly drives the vehicle “V”, that is, a driver manual drivingtime, based on vehicle driving history. The processor 380 may beconfigured to determine a suggestion for platoon driving to the driverwhen the driver's fatigue degree is out of a reference range, the drivermanual driving time exceeds a reference time, or there is a schedule tobe processed during driving of the vehicle. The driver's fatigue degreecan be quantitatively analyzed by measuring a weight distributionaccording to driver's posture change using a weight sensor built in aseat. The processor 380 may be configured to determine a suggestion forplatoon driving to the driver when the measured weight distributionexceeds a pre-defined reference value. The reference range is determinedby a system designer based on experimental data of the driver's fatigue.For example, the schedule may include a meeting or other similar eventthat the driver may attend to during platoon driving.

The method described herein below may be executed by a controllermounted within the vehicle. In particular, the vehicle “V” may beconfigured to request the service server 100 to determine whether it ispossible to join a platoon when the suggestion for platoon driving isdetermined (S340). The vehicle “V” may be configured to provideinformation regarding a current position of the vehicle “V” to theservice server 100 when requesting the determination whether it ispossible to join a platoon. The service server 100 may then beconfigured to determine whether it is possible to join a platoon basedon the request of the vehicle “V” and calculate a platoon joiningposition and a platoon joining time (S350). The service server 100 maybe configured to determine whether there is a platoon which the vehicle“V” is able to join based on the current position of the vehicle “V”(e.g., a platoon is located in a nearby location to the vehicle'sposition). When there is the platoon which the vehicle “V” is able tojoin, the service server 100 may be configured to calculate a platoonjoining position and a platoon joining time based on the platoon drivingglobal route of the corresponding platoon and the current position andindividual driving route of the vehicle “V”.

Further, the service server 100 may be configured to transmitinformation regarding the platoon joining position and time to thevehicle “V” (S360). In response to receiving the information regardingthe platoon joining position and time, the vehicle “V” may be configuredto determine whether to join the platoon (S370). In other words, thevehicle “V” may be configured to inform the driver of the informationregarding the platoon joining position and time and determine whether tojoin the platoon based on the driver's intention to participate inplatoon driving. In response to determining to join the platoon, thevehicle “V” may be configured to transmit a platoon joining request tothe service server 100 (S380).

The service server 100 may be configured to generate a driving routeincluding platoon joining information and transmit the driving route tothe vehicle “V” based on a platoon joining request of the vehicle “V”(S390). The service server 100 may then be configured to generate theplatoon joining information based on the platoon driving global routedetected based on the current position of the vehicle “V”. The serviceserver 100 may be configured to transmit the platoon joining informationto the grouping vehicles GV when transmitting the driving route to thevehicle “V” (S400). The vehicle “V” and the grouping vehicles GV maythen move to the platoon joining position included in the platoonjoining information (S410). The vehicle “V” and the grouping vehicles GVmay be configured to execute platoon driving when the platoon joiningposition (S420) I reached. On the other hand, when the vehicle “V”determines not to join the platoon, that is, determines individualdriving in S370, the vehicle “V” may return to S320 and maintain routeguidance based on the individual driving route.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a computing system for executing a routesearch method according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentdisclosure. Referring to FIG. 5, a computing system 1000 may include atleast one processor 1100, a memory 1300, a user interface input device1400, a user interface output device 1500, storage 1600, and a networkinterface 1700, which are connected with each other via a bus 1200.

The processor 1100 may be a central processing unit (CPU) or asemiconductor device that processes instructions stored in the memory1300 and/or the storage 1600. The memory 1300 and the storage 1600 mayinclude various types of volatile or non-volatile storage media. Forexample, the memory 1300 may include a ROM (Read Only Memory) and a RAM(Random Access Memory).

Thus, the operations of the method or the algorithm described inconnection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be embodieddirectly in hardware or a software module executed by the processor1100, or in a combination thereof.

The software module may reside on a storage medium (that is, the memory1300 and/or the storage 1600) such as a RAM, a flash memory, a ROM, anEPROM, an EEPROM, a register, a hard disk, a removable disk, and aCD-ROM. The exemplary storage medium may be coupled to the processor1100, and the processor 1100 may read information out of the storagemedium and may record information in the storage medium. Alternatively,the storage medium may be integrated with the processor 1100. Theprocessor 1100 and the storage medium may reside in an applicationspecific integrated circuit (ASIC). The ASIC may reside within a userterminal. In another case, the processor 1100 and the storage medium mayreside in the user terminal as separate components.

According to the present disclosure, it may be possible to provide anoptimal driving route in which individual driving and platoon drivingare possible based on real-time traffic situations and platoon drivinginformation. Therefore, a driver may take a rest or process a specificschedule while the vehicle performs platoon driving (e.g., the drivermay not be required to manually operate the vehicle). The effects of thepresent disclosure are not limited to the effects described above, andother effects not described may be clearly understood by those skilledin the art from the description of the claims.

Hereinabove, although the present disclosure has been described withreference to exemplary embodiments and the accompanying drawings, thepresent disclosure is not limited thereto, but may be variously modifiedand altered by those skilled in the art to which the present disclosurepertains without departing from the spirit and scope of the presentdisclosure claimed in the following claims. Therefore, the exemplaryembodiments of the present disclosure are provided to explain the spiritand scope of the present disclosure, but not to limit them, so that thespirit and scope of the present disclosure is not limited by theembodiments. The scope of the present disclosure should be construed onthe basis of the accompanying claims, and all the technical ideas withinthe scope equivalent to the claims should be included in the scope ofthe present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. A navigation system, comprising: a controllerconfigured to perform platoon driving, wherein the controller is mountedwithin a vehicle; and a service server, wherein the service serverincludes a communicator configured to perform communication with thevehicle and receive traffic information, a database configured to storeplatoon driving information received from the communicator, and aprocessor configured to generate a driving route based on the trafficinformation and the platoon driving information based on a route searchrequest from the controller.
 2. The navigation system of claim 1,wherein the platoon driving information includes information regarding aplatoon driving global route, a position of a grouping vehicle, and anautonomous driving level.
 3. The navigation system of claim 2, whereinthe processor is configured to generate an individual driving routebased on the traffic information according to the route search request,search for the platoon driving global route which at least partiallymatches the individual driving route, and calculate and provide aplatoon joining position and a platoon joining time to the controller.4. The navigation system of claim 3, wherein the processor is configuredto generate a driving route in which individual driving and platoondriving are possible by combining the individual driving route, and theplatoon driving global route based on a determination of whether to joina platoon.
 5. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein the processor isconfigured to generate a driving route of a lowest cost using a costfunction considering at least one of fatigue, a manual driving time anda schedule of a driver, whether it is possible for the vehicle to join aplatoon, an autonomous driving level of a grouping vehicle, a waitingtime for joining the platoon, an individual driving distance afterplatoon driving, a platoon driving hold time, and a platoon leavingtime.
 6. The navigation system of claim 1, wherein the processor isconfigured to calculate a platoon joining position and a platoon joiningtime at which it is possible to participate in platoon driving based ona current position of the vehicle, in response to receiving a requestfor determination of whether it is possible to join a platoon from thevehicle.
 7. A vehicle terminal apparatus, comprising: a communicatorconfigured to perform communication with a service server and a groupingvehicle; a vehicle controller configured to operate a vehicle; and aprocessor configured to receive a driving route in which individualdriving and platoon driving are possible by requesting a route searchfrom the service server, wherein the processor is configured to transmita signal to the vehicle controller to execute platoon driving when thevehicle arrives at a platoon driving section in the driving route. 8.The vehicle terminal apparatus of claim 7, wherein the processor isconfigured to determine whether to suggest the platoon driving to adriver based on at least one of fatigue, a manual driving time and aschedule of the driver using sensors mounted within the vehicle whilethe vehicle is being driven.
 9. The vehicle terminal apparatus of claim8, wherein the processor is configured to request the service server todetermine whether it is possible to join a platoon based on a currentposition of the vehicle when it is determined to suggest the platoondriving.
 10. The vehicle terminal apparatus of claim 7, furthercomprising: a user input device configured to receive a user input,wherein the processor is configured to stop the platoon driving andexecute route guidance for the individual driving in response receivinga platoon exit command from the user input device during the platoondriving.
 11. A route search method of a navigation system, comprising:receiving, by a service server, a route search request from a vehicle;and generating, by the service server, a driving route based on trafficinformation and platoon driving information according to the routesearch request.
 12. The route search method of claim 11, wherein thegenerating of the driving route includes: generating, by the serviceserver, a driving route of a lowest cost using a cost functionconsidering at least one of fatigue, a manual driving time and aschedule of a driver, whether it is possible for the vehicle to join aplatoon, an autonomous driving level of a grouping vehicle, a waitingtime for joining the platoon, an individual driving distance afterplatoon driving, a platoon driving hold time, and a platoon leavingtime.
 13. The route search method of claim 11, wherein the generating ofthe driving route includes: generating, by the service server, anindividual driving route of the vehicle based on the trafficinformation; searching for, by the service server, a platoon drivingglobal route which at least partially matches the individual drivingroute; and generating, by the service server, a driving route includingplatoon joining information by combining the individual driving routeand the platoon driving global route.
 14. The route search method ofclaim 13, further comprising after the searching for of the platoondriving global route: calculating, by the service server, a platoonjoining position and a platoon joining time based on the platoon drivingglobal route, and transmitting the platoon joining position and time tothe vehicle; determining, by a vehicle controller, whether to join aplatoon based on a driver's intention to join the platoon based on theplatoon joining position and time; and requesting, by the vehiclecontroller, platoon joining from the service server when it isdetermined to join the platoon.
 15. The route search method of claim 13,further comprising after the generating of the driving route includingthe platoon joining information: transmitting, by the service server,the driving route including the platoon joining information to thevehicle; moving, by the vehicle controller, to a platoon joiningposition based on the platoon joining information; and joining, by thevehicle controller, a designated platoon at the platoon joining positionand executing platoon driving.
 16. The route search method of claim 15,further comprising after the performing of the platoon driving:stopping, by the vehicle controller, the platoon driving, and executingroute guidance for individual driving when a platoon leaving command isreceived from a driver.
 17. The route search method of claim 13, furthercomprising after the searching for the platoon driving global route:transmitting, by the service server, the individual driving route whenthe platoon driving global route is not detected; performing, by thevehicle controller, route guidance based on the individual drivingroute; determining, by the vehicle controller, whether to join a platoonbased on driver information during driving of the vehicle according tothe route guidance; and requesting, by the vehicle controller, platoonjoining from the service server when it is determined to join theplatoon.
 18. The route search method of claim 17, wherein thedetermining of whether to join the platoon based on the driverinformation includes: determining, by the vehicle controller, whether tosuggest platoon driving to a driver based on at least one of fatigue, amanual driving time and a schedule of the driver, requesting, by thevehicle controller, the service server to determine whether it ispossible to join the platoon in response to determining to join theplatoon, calculating, by the service server, a platoon joining positionand a platoon joining time at which the vehicle is able to join theplatoon for platooning based on a current position of the vehicle andtransmitting the platoon joining position and time to the vehicle, anddetermining, by the vehicle controller, whether to join the platoonbased on a driver's intention to join the platoon based on the platoonjoining position and time.
 19. The route search method of claim 11,wherein the platoon driving information includes information regarding aplatoon driving global route, a position of a grouping vehicle, and anautonomous driving level.